What’s next for IoT?

When initially the internet was introduced, didn’t it feel like magic to all of us? The possibilities and its uses were endless and within no time it overtook the market. Many excited consumers and market specialists believe that Internet of Things (IoT) could be the next big breakthrough. Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning and decision making, and data analytics has been given a new meaning and horizon. IoT is without any doubt going to affect every aspect of the lives of the consumer and the businesses, but still, it is at a nascent stage. What IoT plans would not only need mature organizations which are able to provide professional services and suitable human resources, but also the ability to tackle the challenges which this new technology would provide.

Many experts have also claimed, that although this technology is bound to change the life of all the consumers, but the most immediate benefits will be reaped by the businesses and the corporates when tonnes of data and analytics would be at their disposal. Let’s see what the tarot cards say for the future of IoT.

Ecosystems and devices: The foundation of IoT: An efficient platform which does not only send the data but also offers device control and application development on the basis of the analyzed information is bound to emerge in a couple of years. A process of standardization has become important for complex projects. For example, setting up a smart city would require solutions and systems from several vendors. The sharing of information becomes difficult as the number of vendors increases, as all these systems would follow different protocols.

The development of new ecosystems by different players in the market would rattle the cages of smart cars, devices, and smart cities. This will result in cut-throat competition between different ecosystems in future, and the more versatile and adaptable the ecosystem would be the higher would be the chances of success rate.

In other words, if the devices are updatable with changing technology, they could be successful. With analysis of the stored data, multiple products, services, and applications would be launched, which would increase competition and improve customer satisfaction.

Development of Edge Analytics: Many companies boasted about the real-time analytics in their ecosystem and how helpful and fast the process could be. Sounds too good to be true, probably it is. It takes some seconds for the sensor to grasp information, classify it and send only relevant information and data to the cloud ecosystem. Further, the analysis of bulk data and sending the solutions could waste much time. In some industries, this latency could be accepted, but in many others like robotics which are controlled remotely, this latency level would be unacceptable. Here, edge analytics comes into picture which proposes, giving complex analytical capabilities in the sensors themselves. As these sensors would be able to analyze the data itself, it surely will decrease the latency by leaps and bounds.

For the masses: Digging deep into the discussion, you might feel that such complex technology would take a lot of money to configure and operate. But many SaaS solutions would be targeting medium-sized businesses, by controlling such costs, so multiple enterprises can reap its benefits. It is imperative to note that IoT could provide customization to smaller businesses as they will provide access to factory data.

Customer satisfaction to the next level: The current trend has always focused on customer satisfaction and after sale services. The marketing concept states that the customer-firm relationship starts even before the manufacturing of the product and stays even after the sales. Many innovations in IoT will help in taking these services to the next level. Not only the product can be remotely monitored but also predicting the future maintenance and developing better products would become easier.

The threat to security: IoT devices make the thing susceptible to not only physical tampering but also hacks and information attacks. Encrypting the information, so that the data is not hacked or tampered with becomes most important. Some specific codes can also lead the device to be active, which ultimately drains the battery.

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About sujoydhar

Sujoy Dhar is a business and technology and blogger. He is driven by the need to be creative and says that writing for various web properties allows him to stay up to date on one of the most rapidly evolving industries around. Each day provides Dhar with a new opportunity to educate readers about tech news and advances that help change the world for the better.